Ford Motor Company is making Miami-Dade County its new test bed for self-driving vehicles. The automaker and some partners are starting pilot programs to see how consumers react to autonomous and semi-autonomous vehicles. (Feb. 27) AP

The 2017 Ford Fusion Sport.(Photo: Ford Motor Company)

A failure to properly affix steering wheels has triggered a recall of 1.38 million Ford and Lincoln cars in North America.

Ford Motor said Wednesday that it is issuing a safety recall for the 2014 through 2018 model-year Ford Fusion and Lincoln MKZ sedans.

The recall comes after officials discovered that the cars have “potentially loose steering wheel bolts that could result in a steering wheel detaching from the steering column,” Ford said in a statement.

Taken together, the quality failures underscore the challenges facing new CEO Jim Hackett, who must get the company’s present business on track while charting a course for an expensive future defined by electric cars and self-driving vehicles.

The latest recall affects 1.3 million vehicles in the U.S., about 62,000 in Canada and about 14,000 in Mexico.

Ford dealers will fix these cars for free. Customers will be notified when they can visit for repairs.

The automaker said it had identified at least two accidents potentially connected to the defect, as well as one injury.

The recall covers the 2014 through 2017 Fusion made at Ford’s Flat Rock, Mich. plant from Aug. 6, 2013, through Feb. 29, 2016; the 2014 through 2018 Fusion made at Ford’s Hermosillo, Mexico, plant from July 25, 2013, through March 5, 2018; and the 2014 through 2018 Lincoln MKZ made at the Hermosillo, Mexico, plant from July 25, 2013, through March 5, 2018.